Human Resource Development for Sustainable Agricultural

Mechanization in Sri Lanka

Prof. D. A. Nimal Dharmasena Department of Agric. Engineering University of Peradeniya Sri Lanka

Content • Overview of the higher education (HE) and research institutions

offer AgEng./Mechanization in Sri Lanka

• Dept. of Agric. Engineering -Research & Training focus on Agric. mechanization

• The needs assessment and challenges faced by the HE and research institutions on HRD in Agric. mechanization

• Suggestions for regional cooperation on HE and joint research on HRD in Agric. mechanization

• Possible contributions from the Dept. of Agric. Engineering, (UoP) for such regional cooperation 2

Overview of the Higher Education and Research Institutions That Offer Agric. Mechanization Programmes, and Their

Programme Settings in Sri Lanka

History of higher education system in Sri Lanka

• The modern university education system was established in Sri Lanka in 1921

• University of Ceylon was established in 1942

• The first Faculty of Agriculture and Veterinary Science was established at Peradeniya in 1947

Intake: 16 students

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Ministry of Higher Education and Highways

Institutions Governed by the UGC

15 universities Three campuses 18 degree awarding institutes

8 universities Agriculture/Agric. Sciences Faculties

• PGIA, (UoP) • Institute of Agro-Technology

and Rural Sciences, University of Colombo

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Agricultural Engineering/Mechanization related

Training and Research

State Univ. not governed by the UGC – (UNIVOTEC)

National Higher Education System

4 Univ.

Eight Faculties of Agriculture

Potential - 1250/yr

Produce - 800/yr

About 11% - Specialize in Agric. Engineering (# 90)

Agricultural machinery related research (undergraduate level)

about 38/yr 6

At Present

7 credits of Coursework + Practical -150 h + Other Machinery Related Trainings

Engineering graduates (Mechanical Engineering) in agric. machinery sector

• A few in state sector R & D institutions and the rest serves at the executives in the private sector

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Five Eng. Faculties

About 1400 Engineering Graduates

Less than 10/yr engage in Agric. Machinery

sector

Involvement of Private Sector Institutions in Agric. Machinery Training

Aquinas College of Higher Studies - Agriculture and

Animal Husbandry, -(NVQL-6)

AgEng. component on farm machinery maintenance

South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (Pvt)

Ltd. (SAITM) - Initiating a new degree in Biosystems

Engineering- includes mechanization related to Agro-

processing

• There are many other private institutions in the HE sector

– But, No Agric. Machinery Related Training

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• Only one collage of technology offers a ‘Farm Machinery

Technology’ Diploma (NVQ L- 5) # about 20-25/year

• One University Collage (Kuliyapitiya), ready to offer the same

programme (NVQL-6) (two more in future ) 10

Ministry of Youth Affairs and Skills Development

University of Vocational Technology (UNIVOTEC)

Five university collages

61 collages of Technology

680 Technical collages

Higher Education in Vocational Technology

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Vocational Training - Ministry of Agriculture

School of Agriculture Diploma in Agriculture (NVQL- 5/6)

05 schools Annual intake - 275 Agricultural Engineering/ Mechanization as a subject

Research institutions In the country:

• Under Five Ministries – 1. Ministry of Plantation Industries

2. Ministry of Agriculture

3. Ministry of Technology and Research

4. Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development

5. Ministry of Livestock and Rural Community Development

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1. Ministry of Plantation Industries Four main plantation research institutions

Tea Research Institute (TRI)

Coconut Research Institute

Rubber Research Institute

Sugarcane Research Institute (SRI)

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Research and Training in

mechanization aspects

2. Ministry of Agriculture

Department of Export Agriculture

1. Food Research Unit (FRU) - Research - food processing

(processing machinery )

2. The Farm Mechanization Research and Training Centre (FMRC) –

Research on farm machinery

Testing and Evaluation of Farm Machinery

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Department of Agriculture

• Plays a major role in agricultural machinery research and training

Department of Export Agriculture :

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Two Research Stations :

Central Research Station at Matale - actively engaged in

developing processing machinery for spice crops

Cinnamon Research Station - little research on machinery

Institutes Under the Ministry of Agriculture :

1. Institute of Postharvest Technology (IPHT)

• R & D related to postharvest and processing machinery & training

2. Hector Kobbekaduwa Agrarian Research and Training Institute (HARTI)

• Limited research involvements in Agric. Mechanization

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3. Ministry of Technology and Research :

Five Research Institutions

National Engineering Research

and Development Centre (NERD)

Industrial Technology

Institute (ITI)

R & D in farm/processing

machinery

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4. Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development:

National Aquatic

Resources Research

and Development

Agency (NARA)

Involves very little in machinery

5. Ministry of Livestock and Rural Community

Development:

• The Veterinary Research Institute in Sri Lanka (VRI)

No Engineering Division ???

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AgEng. UoP Develop

Technology for:

•Fully automated egg

incubators

•Portable milking

machines

•ICU incubators etc.

Specific Programmes/Research Focuses on Agric. Machinery and Mechanization: Dept. of

Agric. Engineering, University of Peradeniya

• The University of Peradeniya (UOP):

• Nine faculties in one location: The main strength for

interdisciplinary research

• The Faculty of Agriculture, UOP (Since 1947)

- The oldest Agric. faculty in the country

• The Postgraduate Institute of Agriculture, UoP (1975)

- Oldest PG institute in the country

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The oldest and the largest residential university

9 faculties, 4 PG institutions & 9 centers

Undergraduates - 32,370; Postgraduates 6,600

The Dept. Agric. Engineering (1973)

R & D and training on engineering technology

for agriculture

General courses: Farm machinery and mechanization

Majoring Module: “Agricultural & Biosystems Engineering”

• Our Strengths:

• 15 well qualified staff (6 of them are professors) – 15 patents

Farm machinery fleet; implements, harvesting machines etc.

10 ha farm for farm machinery testing and training purposes.

Engineering workshop

Research students linked to PGIA

Well established working links with DoA & all other institutions

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Modes of practical training:

• Students are trained in the FMTC & FMRC of the DoA

• In-plant training in leading farm machinery companies

• Student-industry interactions: Seminar & Discussion forums

• Vacation jobs in private sector: Students involve in;

• machine assembling,

• testing and evaluation,

• assessment of machinery needs and

• post-sales consumer feedback surveys etc. 22

Agric. Eng: R & D on Agric. Machinery:

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Work in Progress

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Water filter

25 Tea leaf harvesting machine

Airated soaking for reduced leaching of organic matter

Chilies dryer design

Our Collaborations/linkages with international

(funding) agencies

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GTZ

ODA

Other Collaborations/linkages

• Represents the Sri Lanka Korea Rural Development Administration (an Alumni Association on mechanization)

• Member of the former Regional Network for Agricultural Machinery (RNAM)

• Staff members serve in national machinery policy formulations

• Research advisory boards of R & D institutions

• R & D jointly with the DoA on farm machinery

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The Needs assessment, Challenges and Constraints Faced by the HE and Research Institutions on HRD in

Agricultural Mechanization in Sri Lanka

• Needs assessment on HRD in agricultural

mechanization - Need of the day for national planning

But no one has paid attention so far!!!

• Main challenge :

The limited number of job opportunities available in this

sector – informal data

Why?

Difficult to produce machines at a comparative price

Main setback is – small country – limited sale

Small family business

Graduate salaries – not that attractive

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The private sector involvement on machinery development is limited

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Cashew nut

splitter

Water pumps, Threshers, coconut

fibre extractor, Food grinders etc

Few more Family businesses

• The private sector involvement,

extremely limited – low sales volume-less profits

Prefer to import machines – COP is very high

They maintain mainly training and services

• Training on operation and maintenance of agric. machinery has a big demand

• Testing and evaluation is also limited - National Farm Machinery Act is not yet passed by the government

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Suggestions for Regional Cooperation on Higher Education and Joint Research on HRD in Agric.

Mechanization

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• Education plays a major part in the life and culture of Sri Lanka (literacy rate 98.1%)

• Free education provided up to the university (Degree) level

• R & D and training through a regional network could harvest the potential of human resources in the country

• Challenges – small sales volume of agric. machinery,

• Main mechanization focus – Paddy & Tea at present

• Tax on raw material import

• Opportunities:

• Agricultural based country; high labour cost & shortage; CKDu & Health issues; - very high potential for expanding higher education in agric. mechanization

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Advantages of a regional network

• To develop new technology and share regional

experiences/available technology.

• New technology could be transferred to

manufactures in the region through such a network

• Joint research between countries - Some

technology could be shared & expand the

opportunities for better outputs

• A technology development network could identify

new technological needs of the countries and share

their expertise through the network partners

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Contributions from the Department of Agricultural Engineering, UoP for Such Regional Cooperation

• The Dept. of Egric. Engineering could serve as the

national focal point of a network

• Agriculture Education Unit (AEU), Faculty of

Agriculture - for fund management

•

• A national core-group should be formed as a Public-

private partnership

• Such Co-groups should be formed in all the partner

countries, link them together to form the regional

network

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Fund disbursement

Regional Steering Committee

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Funding

Source/s

Fund Management

Body

Country

B Country

A

Country

D Country

C

Country Managers Planning Meetings

Country Manager

Co-group – National R & D Planning team

Universities

Farmer

organizations

VTC DOA FM companies

Conceptual Model

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